Gone Forever
by LoveBackwards
Summary: Evidence from his wife who disappeared years ago comes up. Will their daughter remind Hiten of the love he once felt, or bring out the hatred he already has?
1. Hello

He drank as he did any afternoon, heavily. Hiten leaned back in his chair, staring blankly out the vast window in front of him to the nothingness of his valley. His homeland, a place that brought dreariness and depression, that and death, of course. It couldn't be much later than midday; soon he would go find a woman for his fix of sex and food. Then tomorrow, he'd awake to the same schedule.

It had been around fifteen (or sixteen?) years since his wife had vanished without a trace. It was unexpected to him, and at first he felt grief. He had loved her, truly; though looking back he never seemed to show it properly. Clearly she didn't have the patience and wasn't worth the hurt, he moved on quickly. He didn't have to bother wasting time on a thing called 'love', she didn't understand it so why would any other waste of flesh called woman?

"I don't miss you at all…"

He placed his empty glass beside him and eased himself to his feet, stretching his arms over his head and letting out a loud yawn before lazily walking down the worn halls of his manor. He didn't even feel like hunting, but truthfully he hadn't eaten well in a few days. He swiftly put his armor on, he didn't even have to glance down to lace the ties together he had grown so accustom. He snatched his Raigekijin from its hold on the wall and walked outside, the brisk winter air brushing against his bare arms and giving him a chill, just a small one. He dismissed it on contact and continued stepping down the small steps, stopping at a sight of a figure in the distance. Anything that wasn't grey seemed to stand out around here, he saw it was the figure of a human (or demon in human form) and for some reason, it was approaching him. It must've been a foreign traveler, anyone near his valley of death knew not to come here. Perhaps they couldn't see his manor yet…then again, it was the only thing that wasn't a hill or mountain. Deciding wondering wasn't enough; he glided on his flaming heels, his eyes starting to tear from the freezing cold wind blowing against them. He saw the figure recognize his approach, it was a woman, or a younger girl, and rather than run; she stood there.

He was a bit taken back by the reaction, the girl standing with a scarf over her head, dress to her ankles, bundling up the best she could, waiting for him. He stopped, his brows knotted together and stood in front of her, kicking his wheels aside. The scarf wound around her head so all he could see was her eyes, though even they were masked by her bangs. He grabbed the sides of her face, hunching over just to try and get a glimpse of her face. She only now seemed frightened of his presence. She shifted her face until it was out of his grasp and he let out an agitated huff, watching her pull down the scarf as to reveal her nose to her chin, she was biting down on her petite cherry lips.

"You have a purpose?" He asked, feeling discomfort. He didn't even get to have his pick of a woman before spotting this one; perhaps she would be good just for eating? The girl hesitantly nodded his head and he pursed his lips, waiting for her to continue. When she didn't do so right away, he grabbed the front of her kimono, pulling her to him with her dress knotted in his fist. Her face was so neared to his she could feel his hot breath in the cold region. She gasped and instinctively attempted to push him away by his chest. "You said you had a reason to be here, speak it now, woman." He demanded through his teeth and she brushed her bangs aside. He stared in shock, somewhat in horror, at her large ruby eyes. The heavy mascara that surrounded them gave her the relation, though he denied it.

"You're Hiten…o-of the Thunder Brothers?" She asked, holding her scarf up to her cheeks and darting her pupils around, away from his. His grip had loosened and now he was nodding. "My name is Aira." She started, now slightly more firmly and he arched his brow curiously at her.

"Should I know you?" His tone had softened as her grew. He didn't want this girl here, with those eyes and delicate features, that porcelain skin; she was a replica or what he hated, his reason for loathing women.

"I am the daughter to…Abi-hime…and you."


	2. Disappointment

She didn't expect the blow after he pulled her to him by her kimono, punched her square in the face, and pressed the sole of his foot to her jaw. She could feel her tears flow as he ground her cheek into the dirt, kicking her ribs and yanking her up by the hair, only to throw her back down. She scampered to her feet, petrified, and attempted to run away from him, though it was a limp. He pulled her back by the arm and she trembled, bit froze from shock and fear. His eyes softened as he stared at her, his reactions were unreadable to her, they made no sense.

"Make like your mother and disappear, wench." He whispered, nearing his lips to her ear. Her body shook as he gripped her fragile forearms, pulling her nearer again. "If I ever catch you here again, I will make a meal out of you." He pushed her away and turned his back to her, walking away with the best composure he could manage. It must've been convincing, considering she still seemed shaken up, but she tried to ignore it, swiftly brushing her tears away and pulling her layers of clothing tight over her skin.

"H-Hiten?" She stammered and he groaned. He kept on as though he didn't hear, stopping when he heard a thud, glancing over his shoulder, ever so slightly, to see the collapsed girl.

* * *

Aira stirred as she slit her ruby eyes open, glancing around questionably at her surroundings. The wooden room was worn, perhaps from battle? She eased herself up until she was in sitting position, glancing up at the sight of a figure in the doorframe. It was a man's, and once out of the shadows, she recognized it as Hiten's, her father's, though she wouldn't openly call him her father. He sat cross-legged in front of her, handing her a bowl of food. Without questioning it she took it from his hands and contently ate, sitting up on her knees. She couldn't remember her last meal since her travel.

"How old are you?" He asked as he sipped his liquor. She scrunched her nose to the strong scent and averted her eyes to the food she was eating. His expression was exhausted; he seemed tired though she couldn't figure out what the cause was.

"Sixteen." She muttered under her breath, bowing her head so her bangs hid her eyes. She could feel him studying her intently, though she was somewhat scared of him now, but wasn't that expected? He grabbed her chin and she instinctively looked up to meet his gaze, feeling him loosen his grip on her.

"Don't mumble your words, girl." It wasn't his usual label for women, even though he did view her as only a girl, but he knew she had a connection to him, he just refused to acknowledge it. She nodded, hesitantly pulling away from his hold and finishing what was left.

Part of him wanted to find the woman who left him, abandon this girl and perhaps take his vengeance out on the woman herself. Why he couldn't just kill this girl was beyond him. Was it that he felt the blood tie between them? Maybe he just wanted directions to his next prey, to her mother. The other part of him wished he had left earlier, or killed the girl before questioning. That part didn't want to deal with the strange mixture of emotions he felt.

"Where's your mother?" He asked and she bit her bottom lip, suddenly hesitant to answer. She noticed how he called Abi 'your mother', not her name or anything near affectionate. "Well?'

"We were separated…there was an attack and…I couldn't find her after and didn't know where she'd be and I'd never traveled alone, but…she's spoken of you…so I found you." She confessed, though it came out quick and like a meaningless ramble to Hiten.

"Where was the battle, among humans I'll presume?" If he had been able to have a better understanding of others, perhaps he'd pick up on the majority of the story she was leaving out, just maybe. She fidgeted with her dress on her lap, thinking about why she shouldn't have come here. Perhaps she should have let the winter take her life.

"Ways back…I only got this far because of my human form." She explained and he rolled his eyes dramatically.

"Do you know where you came from?"

"I'd recognize it." She confirmed and he sighed, staring at her, pondering what he should do with the situation. Eating her still was an option, after all. "I only came all this way…to ask of your assistance. I just couldn't do it on my own. I tried, but it's so risky with everything going on, and I heard of how strong you are. I don't expect to stay with you or for you to raise me or even care for me; can you just help guide me? Please?" She nearly begged and he snorted, picking up her dish she had eaten from and his empty glass.

"Be ready when I say, or you're as good as dead to me." He slid the door shut behind him.

* * *

He sat up on his bed, leaning his back against the bedpost. He had sworn to forever hate her, but now he had the possible chance of seeing her again. He tried to remember why she left, but he couldn't. He couldn't justify her reasoning, so in his eyes, it remained betrayal. He slowly closed his eyes, no longer fighting his need to pass out.

"_Hiten?" Abi looked up, a gentle smile gracing her petite painted lips. Her head rested calmly against his breast, hearing each breath he took as he absent mindedly played with her hair._

"_Hm?" He asked dismissively._

"_How do you feel about children?" She looked up, a small amount of excitement showing. When he had first met her, she had done nothing but feign happiness, now she was more open about how she felt, as she should be after an unarranged marriage. He was somewhat pleased to find that most of the feelings she had related to happiness. Most._

"_Why should we even discuss this? What, me vowing to be devout to you isn't enough?" He rolled his eyes and she nodded, leaning her head back so she wasn't facing him. "Look, we don't need that in our lives right now, you're the one who said you never wanted kids anyway; nobody said I ever did." He explained._

"_I still don't…but…" She mumbled, her voice drifting off as she went on._

"_But what? It's simple, we just choose not to have any so that way we're not fucking miserable, you bring up such irrelevant things." He rolled his eyes and she nodded._

"_You're right." She agreed, closing her eyes, knowing he wasn't looking so she could frown._


	3. Pain

Hiten groaned as he awoke, it was an unfamiliar feeling when he did so. Something made him feel warmth and comfort, a homey aroma. He lifted his neck and inhaled through his nose, taking in the scent of breakfast cooking. That was something he hadn't awoken to in a while. He rolled out of bed and untangled the blanket that wrapped around his leg at some point. Slowly, with his hand against the wall, he walked in the direction of the kitchen, scowling at the sight of Aira cooking over the small fire. At least she was resourceful, if he ever had to abandon her now he wouldn't feel so bad.

"…good morning." She blinked up, realizing his presence; he shrugged in response and went for the liquor cabinet. "It's not good to drink so early." She frowned and he seemed to ignore the comment, pouring himself a glass of wine and sitting before her, an exhausted expression plastered on his face. His tired eyes and natural frown upset her mood, though she distracted herself with the cooking, refusing to look up to him until she was done.

"Your mother taught you?" He asked in his husky tone and she nodded. He could tell she was hesitant to speak of Abi, but that only seemed to encourage him asking about her. He wanted to know how she wasted her years after him. "Where did she raise you?"

"Oh, we moved around a lot. Human villages were safer because she was alone with me, so we just moved from place to place so nobody would really figure out what we were. We had to move quickly sometimes because of how suspicious they were, but it was a decent lifestyle, when we didn't stay there we'd have a shelter to ourselves, but her powers weakened with me. She said she was too caught up in it, but it wasn't something that bothered her." Aira explained and Hiten nodded. So she had remained alone, or at least she did a majority of the time. Not many men would want a single mother, though, and he knew Abi would never want a human to bed her. She wouldn't allow that, the thought made him smirk slightly. She was demanding enough when it came to him, he'd feel bad for any pitiful human that got in her way.

"Rags to riches." He stated blankly, not sure whether he should feel bothered she gave up so much, even him, to raise their daughter. Then he remembered, she did it to herself, she doesn't deserve anyone's pity, his especially.

"I guess…she didn't tell me much about her life before she met you…well, married you. She didn't talk about before you guys were married much." She concluded, handing him a bowl he ate with a greater scowl. He ate in a sloppy manner, but she didn't want to detest. He was actually speaking with her, not talking at her or threatening her, she would try and see how long this could last.

"Ah." He placed the empty bowl beside him and took the last swig from his drink.

"…how'd you meet?" She asked, a glint of excited curiosity appeared in her scarlet eyes. Her mother's scarlet's eyes. He hated looking at her. He got to his feet and stretched his toned arms over his head.

"I don't want to discuss her. You don't bring her name in this house; it's been fine without hearing it for the last seventeen years. We're heading out soon, too, so don't pester me so much for information because our time together will be short." He watched her look to her lap and left the room before he attempted to take back any of his words.

He leaned back against the step of the porch as he had for a couple hours now. He spent too much time thinking, he had blocked her out over a decade ago. Abi was nothing but a memory that this young girl brought to life. He wondered what would have happened had she stayed. If he had shown more interest in a family, maybe she'd still be here and he'd be the one to help her raise Aira. He knew that even if he wasn't necessarily happy with things the way they should be, he'd certainly be less stressed.

"You drink too much…" He looked over to where the meek whisper came from and rolled his eyes, picking up his bottle just to take a swig in front of her. Aira sighed and sat up on her knees beside him.

"Did you go back to your home? Y'know…wherever it was you were living before she disappeared?" He asked casually and she shook her head, taking note he wasn't even looking at her to acknowledge the gesture.

"No."

"Why the hell not? I'm sure she's settled over the years, she's probably hiding in a corner waiting for you to go save her dependant ass." He snickered to himself and she glared.

"She always spoke highly of you, every time I had a question or she was explaining something. She said you were a great warrior and always protected yourself, that's why you could never love her, because you were too scared to get hurt. She said things were better the way they were, but she always defended your case. All I see is a pitiful dru-" She was cut off by the stinging sensation of Hiten's palm across her left cheek. She could feel her tears well up but refused to face him.

"Listen you little bitch, if you want my help you damn well better earn it. That starts with watching your fucking mouth. You know why she left, Aira? I didn't want you. I never wanted you, and she was smart enough to take you away from me before I killed you myself." He waited for her to run inside, but she didn't. She sat, clinging to the fabric of the kimono on her lap and closing her eyes. A tear trickled down her cheek and he snarled; she expected his sympathy? How dare she intrude here, on _his _home and expect him to service her. He roughly pulled her to him by the hair and heard her breaths grow shaky.

"I'm sorry." She whispered quickly and he tossed her aside carelessly, hearing a thud as her body hit the ground beside him. He kept his back faced to her, hearing her shuffle to sit back up, maybe crawl away, he didn't care much.

"Get out of my sight." He mumbled in a raspy tone. She placed her porcelain hand in front of her lips and wiped the blood that trailed along the side of it. Part of her wanted to just run, to leave and never return, but she knew that wasn't possible. "I said get out, Ab…" His voice trailed off and she frowned. He got up and grabbed her neck, dragging her to her room while she gagged and struggled to pry him off. "Don't come out until I say." He whispered in a dangerously low tone and she nodded in terror. He slammed the door shut and leaned his back against the wall beside it, sliding down until he was sitting to stare off.

Why did he have to take what _she_ did to him out on this girl?


	4. Doubt

He could feel her warm breath lightly on his nape, her soft touch, her delicate frame against his. He didn't open his eyes, he didn't have to in order to know she was right there, beside him, holding him close as if letting go would mean she would lose him. He felt the same way about opening his eyes. He ran his fingers through her thick, layered hair, feeling her body flinch at the contact until she realized it was only him. He turned his head to the side, gently pressing her bangs to her forehead with his lips. He knew she was smiling; she liked small things like that, kisses on the forehead. He could smell her sweet scent; it was a distinct one he had grown to like; nothing too floral, though he never asked her where she got it from or what it was made with. She would shift her body up as she did most mornings, stopping when she was by his ear to whisper: _"Good morning, darling." _

Hiten opened his eyes, slowly. The sunlight peering through the window was practically blinding compared to the insides of his eyelids. He frowned when he realized it had all been a façade of his imagination; perhaps a dream. Abi wasn't beside him; she hadn't been for years now. He was sprawled out on his back, tangled in the blankets. He supposed he had another nightmare before his tranquil dream. He shook his head and sat up, he couldn't come to terms with the possibility that he missed her, so he'd push her thoughts and memories to the back of his mind.

Swinging his legs over the bed, Hiten stretched his arms over his head and eased himself up. He took note that floors weren't creaking elsewhere in the manor, also that breakfast wasn't being prepared. Had the girl finally left? A part of him hoped so. He got up at his own pace and walked down the hallway. Sliding the door open, he saw her sitting in the corner on her pathetic excuse of a bed. Her knees were pulled to her chest and her head rested to the side against the wall. She was still asleep, almost peaceful looking.

"Aira?" He called out in what he considered a whisper; his tone was still raspy from the morning. When she didn't respond he approached, trying to keep as peaceful as he could. He sat on the end of the thin bed cross-legged and lightly ran over the bruise on her cheek with his thumb. She flinched, a similar way to how her mother would, before leaning back into his palm.

She was the last thing he had to hold onto from his marriage.

That made him want to get rid of her, but at the same time keep her. She was his, theirs. He sighed and scooped her in his arms, feeling her shift and squirm as she awoke but ignoring it. He sat her on the table in the dining area and she stared blankly with groggy eyes. She rubbed them and yawned, tensing when a wet rag was used to wipe the small amount of blood on her face.

"Hiten?" She whispered and he gave a grunt in response. 'Yes' was what he meant by it. "I was going to cook…but you said not to leave the room and I didn't-"

"Sh." He pulled her hand up to hold the rag his grip was on and turned around to cook. She cocked her head before getting up to stand beside him. Once again, he simply ignored her gesture. She rested her head on his shoulder blade and he furrowed his brows. "What?"

"When are we going? To find my mother, I mean." She felt him lift his shoulders to shrug and let out a sigh. He turned around and gave her a plate of food.

"Just eat, we'll worry about that later."

* * *

Aira rang her hair out one last time before entering the front door. The old wood creaked as it always did and she winced, not wanting to startle him. Something had gotten into him, he hadn't cursed or yelled at her once. If anything, he looked out for her. Something told her it would come to an end soon, she wouldn't keep her hopes up that he'd care for her. Those nearly died out upon arrival. She went to call him out, but she spotted him before she had to. Him and some…creature.

Aira understood there was no possibility of reuniting her parents on good terms. As much as she always hoped her father would walk into her life when she was younger, her doubt grew with age. Especially after meeting him, it was impossible for him to ever look past her mother leaving. But she wasn't there for that situation, she couldn't judge. Understanding these things didn't change how she felt about seeing him with another woman. She couldn't explain it, it was a new feeling she developed. Maybe it was just anger that he had been going on as though nothing had happened and he was never married, or maybe just jealousy. Maybe she was jealous her father didn't have a care in the world and went on without loving anyone while Abi and her suffered, having nothing but each other's love.

"Who's she?" She whispered and Hiten looked up from the woman at his side, smothering him with meaningless affection. He appeared to be in some sort of surprise, did he not expect her to return.

"Aira, go to your room…" He mumbled, the stranger trailing kisses along his collarbone snickered under her breath. She remained where she was, glaring at him. He watched, waiting for her to do what she was told.

"I asked who she was, why is she here?" Her voice cracked and he felt some pang of pity for her. He reminded himself she'd disappear before he knew it. She'd be just like Abi if he let her, going from meaning everything to nothing.

"Why do you think?" He quipped and she bit down viciously on her bottom lip. He rolled his eyes and faced away from her.

"I can see why she left you, you don't care about anything." She turned and went to her room, slamming the door behind her. He snarled and got up, feeling the woman behind him follow. In nothing but a fit of anger he turned around and snapped her neck. The limp body made a thud sound as it hit the floor and he ignored it, he never planned on letting her make it out alive anyway.

"Aira!" He opened the door and she was sitting the same way she was when he woke her up this morning. She gave him a sharp glare and he pulled her up by her arm. "Don't throw words around, I'm your father you respect me." He warned.

"Never acted like you were before. Bet you were a shitty husband to." She flinched, as though waiting for a hit, but slit one eye open when it never came. He was staring at her with a clenched jaw. He looked ready to kill her, but she doubted he would.

"Watch your tone. I never wanted to be your father, that's why your mother left. You think I didn't know about you, Aira? Abi left enough hints you were on the way, she left because I wanted nothing to do with you." He said it all in a calm whisper which startled her more than his yelling.

"I hate you." She whimpered and wiped her eyes, backing away when he released her arm.

"Good, we're heading out first thing in the morning."


End file.
